Country 1035

Martin Satterthwaite, the station’s senior music consultant, speaking to Billboard magazine prior to the launch envisaged a playlist of predominantly American artists divided equally between established and newer, less familiar.

The station's early line up included presenters Chris Grant, Jon Scragg, Randall Lee Rose, Peter Quinn, Paul Hollingdale, David Allan and Bryan Chalker.

Luxembourg-based CLT Multimedia (RTL), who previously held a minority stake had assumed ownership by the beginning of 1995.

An initially over-formulaic, heavy-rotation playlist damaged ratings, but a subsequent, more audience-friendly format saw station share rise, and at one time, even exceed its competitor Jazz FM.

The presenter line-up at this time included Tina Stewart, Keith Francis (station manager), Randall Lee Rose, Gary Ziepe, Miles Long, and Michele Stephens.

Ritz eventually sold the station in a deal which saw the staff go unpaid to Mean Radio, part of Vince Power's Mean Fiddler group.